WASHINGTON -- The Wizards finally got defensive after largely suspect work on that end of the court this season. Expect some tinkering from the Milwaukee Bucks in that area before facing the backcourt of John Wall and Bradley Beal after an epic collapse in advance of facing Washington.Wall nearly outscored the Denver Nuggets in Washingtons 92-85 win Thursday even though the point guards nine points were hardly an astounding total. The Nuggets only had 12 in the final period -- four over the last 10 minutes -- and 33 in the second half as the Wizards (8-13) eventually overcame a 14-point hole in the first quarter.Washington forced 29 turnovers and held Denver to 7 of 32 on 3-point attempts. All of this came after the Orlando Magic scored a season-high 124 points in Tuesdays road win over the Wizards, who rank 28th this season in 3-point shooting defense.Its proven. That should be our M.O. moving forward. Pride ourselves on our defense, said Beal, who led the Wizards with 26 points. No matter what is going on (offensively), we get stops and control what we can control. When we have that mentality, were going to be really good.The Bucks (11-10) were really good early in Fridays matchup against the Hawks before falling 114-110 despite leading by 20 at halftime.It just cant happen, Bucks center Greg Monroe said, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Just a total letdown, both ends. I cant even point to one thing.Especially at home, youre up by 20 in the first half. It just cant happen.Atlanta scored 40 of its 70 second-half points in the third quarter.For them to score 70 in a half, thats not what weve done in the last two weeks, Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. Being up 20 doesnt mean the game is over, and this is a good lesson for us.Jabari Parker led the Bucks with 29 points while Milwaukee received 49 points from its bench against the Atlanta led by 14 each from Monroe and Michael Beasley.Washingtons second unit has been a major weakness this season, but recent signs of growth provide hope. Second-year forward Kelly Oubre, who had eight points, five rebounds and two steals, remained on the court with the starters to close out the Nuggets.It was not the prettiest game but we fought, we battled, we battled, we stayed in front of our men, Wizards coach Scott Brooks said. We made them miss a lot of shots. I thought a lot of guys chipped in. I thought Kelly (Oubre Jr.) did a great job of staying in front of a couple really good basketball players and staying down on their shot fakes.Washington will remain without center Ian Mahinmi. The free agent addition has played in only one game this season due to issues with both knees. 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South Carolina Gamecocks guard Sindarius Thornwell has been suspended indefinitely.Gamecocks coach Frank Martin said in a statement Sunday that Thornwell was suspended for violating an athletic department policy; he did not disclose the policy in question.Thornwell, a 6-foot-5 senior, is having a breakout season through seven games for the No. 20 Gamecocks. He is their leading scorer and rebounder, averaging 18.7 points and 6.7 rebounds. He also is averaginng 4.dddddddddddd1 assists, and is shooting 48.3 percent from 3-point range.Thornwell made the Southeastern Conferences all-freshman team in 2013-14 and its all-defensive team last season.South Carolina is off to a 7-0 start, including wins over Michigan and Syracuse.Information from The Associated Press included in this report. ' ' '